Carthage - Outside of a Dog

Paperback, 368 pages

english language

Published 2026 by Ebury Press.

ISBN:: 978-1-5299-1169-5

The empire behind the legend

Carthage was a power that dominated the western Mediterranean for almost six centuries before its fall to Rome. The history of the realm and its Carthaginians was subsumed by their conquerors and, along the way, the story of the real Carthage was lost. An ancient North African kingdom, Carthage was the home of Hannibal and of Dido, of war elephants and enormous power and wealth, of great beauty and total destruction.

In this landmark new history, Eve MacDonald tells the essential story of the lost culture of Carthage and of its forgotten people, using brand new archaeological analysis to uncover the history behind the legend. A journey that takes us the Phoenician Levant of the early Iron Age to the Atlantic and all along the coast of Africa, Carthage puts the city and the story of North Africa once again at the centre …

The empire behind the legend

Carthage was a power that dominated the western Mediterranean for almost six centuries before its fall to Rome. The history of the realm and its Carthaginians was subsumed by their conquerors and, along the way, the story of the real Carthage was lost. An ancient North African kingdom, Carthage was the home of Hannibal and of Dido, of war elephants and enormous power and wealth, of great beauty and total destruction.

In this landmark new history, Eve MacDonald tells the essential story of the lost culture of Carthage and of its forgotten people, using brand new archaeological analysis to uncover the history behind the legend. A journey that takes us the Phoenician Levant of the early Iron Age to the Atlantic and all along the coast of Africa, Carthage puts the city and the story of North Africa once again at the centre of Mediterranean history. Reclaimed from the Romans, this, for the very first time, is the Carthaginian version of the tale.

2 editions

Alexander reviewed Carthage by Eve MacDonald

review of 'carthage'

4 stars

i have a strong affection to all the historians, who are able to find the new perspective or are even capable of turning the mainstream narration upside down (see Emma Southon). i think you can see here how hard the struggle with biased and obnoxious (roman) sources really is. 'Carthage' is an interesting read, full of new facts and insights in the mediterranian antiquity -- at least for me as a vivid reader of Livy. and it has the melancholy of a work, which shows you the edge of our understanding, pointing in the direction of the ones, who muddied the water.

Subjects

carthage
antiquity